Elle Fair ’19

Thanksgiving can be notorious for unleashing hysteria and chaos throughout the household. The only factor that makes it worth suffering through the tortuous family interrogations and the blaring of the smoke detector is the food. The delightful aroma of fall scents and freshly prepared sweet potatoes alleviates all stress induced by the politically charged debates with Uncle Ted. To help make the holiday more tolerable, here are three dishes that are guaranteed to win everybody over and remind all guests why they love Thanksgiving.

Sweet potatoes
While you may be used to your traditional white mashed potatoes, switch it up with sweet potatoes, a healthy alternative, and have your guests dying to have seconds. An article by Cleveland Clinic found that sweet potatoes are actually healthier than white potatoes because “they have more vitamin C, fewer calories, more fiber and fewer total carbs than white potatoes.”
Add a pinch of salt to a boiling pot of water.
Add 12 sliced sweet potatoes to the boiling pot of water and let the potatoes cook for about 20 to 30 minutes, making sure they are soft.
Remove the potatoes from the pot of water and mash them using an electric mixer.
Blend the potatoes slowly while adding about ½ a cup of milk.
Along with the milk, add half a stick of butter and one tablespoon of maple syrup.
Blend until the potatoes are smooth and fully mixed together with the other ingredients.

Brussel sprouts
Brussel sprouts will bring a healthy platter to your Thanksgiving meal without guests even knowing. These delicious sprouts were just placed on Forbes Top 10 Food Trends, and are increasing in popularity. There are delicious ways to spice up this very healthy vegetable. Here is one with a top rating:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.
Use an oven safe pan and spread butter around the pan. Heat the pan on medium heat on the stove.
Add 9 ounces of brussels sprouts and a small clove of garlic to the pan and season with salt, black pepper and paprika.
Stir for 5-8 minutes.
Remove the pan from the heat and add ¾ cup of heavy cream.
Sprinkle the brussel sprouts with ¾ cup of shredded cheddar cheese and top it off with six slices of crumbled bacon.
Bake until the cheese is melted (about 12 minutes).

Cranberry Sauce
Cranberry sauce is a classic add-on to so many Thanksgiving dishes. Although, cranberries never used to be boiled and spread over meats until about 50 years after the first Thanksgiving. A new 2017 Thanksgiving trend is combining the grape and cranberry flavors to create a tasty sauce. Boiling the cranberries and mixing them with grapes, sugar and water. This is a dish that no store bought sauce can top.

Add ½ cup of water, 12 ounces of cranberries, two cups of grapes and ¾ cup of sugar to saucepan over medium high heat.
Simmer the dish until the grapes have fallen apart and the cranberries have completely popped.
Remove from heat and add a pinch of salt.
Serve the dish at room temperature or right off the stove.